forum threadghostfreckle posted Oct 08, 2025 01:57 PM
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forum threadghostfreckle posted Oct 08, 2025 01:57 PM
(Open Box) ROG Ally 7" 1080p Gaming Handheld Ryzen Z1 Extreme 512GB - Windows $399.99
$400
$650
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Also, the Steam Deck isn't even 300... What are you going on about? If the SD doesn't drop to 270 or so, there's NO way that the much-better-in-every-sense-except-UI Ally will drop under 300. Get real, bubba. We can dream, but this here website is the place to be realistic because our opinions help people buy, or not buy, things.
Dunno... Whoever is thinking about buying these, there are OTHER arguments to wait... BF coming up, and after Christmas, like you said, people will be dumping them, and there's returns too, so on and so forth... but it won't be because of 300 and under prices... it might be 350. it was 370 this week... you know... an actual discount.
Hell... maybe there will be an actual price cut on MSRP to 500 or so, and the discounts will be on the 350 range. Who knows... but there's hoping, and there's facts... and facts remain that you can't buy anything better for 400, or even 600... So there's little to no incentive to cut prices any further.
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The ROG Ally is a low cost entry to getting a Z1 Extreme handheld. It's not perfect. The primary issue is the well documented SD card failures due to proximity to one of the heat exhaust ports. The other problem is the stock 40Wh battery that is acceptable at lower TDP usage, but anemic when running at "Turbo / Performance mode," 25w / 30w. It might get an hour of playtime at those high levels, sometimes closer to 45-50 minutes.
The SD Card issue can be avoided simply by never using one. Replace the 512GB SSD with a larger 1TB or 2TB 2230 NVMe, and you should have enough storage for a multitude of games. 512GB is probably fine if you only play older titles or emulate, but AAA games often run well over 100GB, leaving the handheld low on storage with just a few of those big titles.
The small battery can be improved by replacing it with either one of those JSAux battery replacement kits, or one of the cheap 74wh / 80wh battery replacement kits sold on eBay or Aliexpress.
I personally found Windows 11 to be a poor handheld OS, and installed SteamOS on mine. It's a significantly better experience, and if you have a large Steam library, you'll find the Ally runs most games either very well or acceptably. I also use Decky+Junk Drawer to install Epic Games store titles fairly seemlessly. This all comes with the assumption you're a bit tech-savy, or at least willing to tinker and watch some YouTube videos to transform the Ally into a budget-friendly powerhouse.
The ROG Ally is a low cost entry to getting a Z1 Extreme handheld. It's not perfect. The primary issue is the well documented SD card failures due to proximity to one of the heat exhaust ports. The other problem is the stock 40Wh battery that is acceptable at lower TDP usage, but anemic when running at "Turbo / Performance mode," 25w / 30w. It might get an hour of playtime at those high levels, sometimes closer to 45-50 minutes.
The SD Card issue can be avoided simply by never using one. Replace the 512GB SSD with a larger 1TB or 2TB 2230 NVMe, and you should have enough storage for a multitude of games. 512GB is probably fine if you only play older titles or emulate, but AAA games often run well over 100GB, leaving the handheld low on storage with just a few of those big titles.
The small battery can be improved by replacing it with either one of those JSAux battery replacement kits, or one of the cheap 74wh / 80wh battery replacement kits sold on eBay or Aliexpress.
I personally found Windows 11 to be a poor handheld OS, and installed SteamOS on mine. It's a significantly better experience, and if you have a large Steam library, you'll find the Ally runs most games either very well or acceptably. I also use Decky+Junk Drawer to install Epic Games store titles fairly seemlessly. This all comes with the assumption you're a bit tech-savy, or at least willing to tinker and watch some YouTube videos to transform the Ally into a budget-friendly powerhouse.
Sincerely,
A Guy Who Regrets Buying a Launch Switch 2
The ROG Ally is a low cost entry to getting a Z1 Extreme handheld. It's not perfect. The primary issue is the well documented SD card failures due to proximity to one of the heat exhaust ports. The other problem is the stock 40Wh battery that is acceptable at lower TDP usage, but anemic when running at "Turbo / Performance mode," 25w / 30w. It might get an hour of playtime at those high levels, sometimes closer to 45-50 minutes.
The SD Card issue can be avoided simply by never using one. Replace the 512GB SSD with a larger 1TB or 2TB 2230 NVMe, and you should have enough storage for a multitude of games. 512GB is probably fine if you only play older titles or emulate, but AAA games often run well over 100GB, leaving the handheld low on storage with just a few of those big titles.
The small battery can be improved by replacing it with either one of those JSAux battery replacement kits, or one of the cheap 74wh / 80wh battery replacement kits sold on eBay or Aliexpress.
I personally found Windows 11 to be a poor handheld OS, and installed SteamOS on mine. It's a significantly better experience, and if you have a large Steam library, you'll find the Ally runs most games either very well or acceptably. I also use Decky+Junk Drawer to install Epic Games store titles fairly seemlessly. This all comes with the assumption you're a bit tech-savy, or at least willing to tinker and watch some YouTube videos to transform the Ally into a budget-friendly powerhouse.
Sincerely,
A Guy Who Regrets Buying a Launch Switch 2
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